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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27524392">You &amp; Me &amp; Our Hearts Unseen</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/suspectmind/pseuds/suspectmind'>suspectmind</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Implied Eirika/L'arachel, Sibling Bonding</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 02:47:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,849</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27524392</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/suspectmind/pseuds/suspectmind</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>All it takes for Eirika to have a headache that evening is a small but related bundle of events; she has known from the early morning it won’t be a smooth day, not with all the palace workers running left and right to prepare for the celebration, not with Seth somehow managing to be even more uptight, but she was handling it just fine this morning. Now, she isn’t. </p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem Writer's Zine</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>You &amp; Me &amp; Our Hearts Unseen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written by an anonymous contributor for the Fire Emblem Writer's Zine!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>All it takes for Eirika to have a headache that evening is a small but related bundle of events; she has known from the early morning it won’t be a smooth day, not with all the palace workers running left and right to prepare for the celebration, not with Seth somehow managing to be even more uptight, but she was handling it just fine this morning. Now, she isn’t. </p><p> </p><p>The facts are simple. Ephraim’s coronation as king of all Renais is happening in less than two hours. Said future king is nowhere to be found, which is understandably driving Seth up a wall. Finally, Seth is pleading with her to help find her brother, and while she has a very good idea of where Ephraim might be hiding, the chances of him wanting to talk to his sister are slim. They have never been the best at relaying their feelings to each other, stubborn in nature as they both are, and that’s not bound to change now.</p><p> </p><p>Despite all that, if she doesn’t do something about it her headache has no chances of getting better, and Ephraim showing up to his own coronation is more important than their recent squabbles. It started a few days ago, when preparations and palace work got more hectic, and Eirika had found Ephraim up at late hours in the training grounds instead of resting. He was stabbing at one of the training dolls over and over, drenched in sweat, asking to catch a cold in the night’s chill — Eirika scolded him in her concern and Ephraim took it poorly.</p><p> </p><p>All their fights begin like that, one way or the other, and she never gets to glimpse at what truly is bothering Ephraim. There is something, something he never says, not to her, not to anyone, and it drives a wedge between them that has no reason being there. She loves Ephraim, after all, and has no doubts that Ephraim cares for her with the same intensity. That is why it especially stings when he is unwilling to talk to her, and prefers to face his problems the way he always has. Spearing them.</p><p> </p><p>Her sigh is heavy as she reassures Seth that Ephraim will make it in time and the events will proceed at the intended time. There is one place close to the palace that Ephraim could’ve gone; one of their many shared secrets, a memory of a long gone childhood, though whether they were no longer children is an entirely debatable subject. For the good of Renais, however, they are adults, and one of them has to hold the reigns and livelihood of an entire kingdom. </p><p> </p><p>The hidden spot is a mere fifteen minute walk into the forest stretching beyond the royal palace. Some of the trees have cut marks in them, so that they may never lose the way, but Eirika knows the path as well as she knows herself; left, left again by the big shield shaped rock, right, all as easy as breathing, until her destination comes into full view. A pond big enough to not dry out, but that one would need less than five minutes to walk around, surrounded by weeping willows and a clear patch of grass where the two siblings used to have picnics with their parents. </p><p> </p><p>She remembers even bringing Lyon here a couple times, the three of them learning to swim or simply eating Ephraim’s attempt at making sandwiches. He never got better at it. </p><p> </p><p>Ephraim is sitting in the grass patch, back to her and gazing towards the lake, his spear propped against one of the willow trees to his left. He must have noticed her, as he raises his hand in the air as a greeting, though he doesn’t say a single word to actually acknowledge Eirika’s presence there means he’s in trouble. Not that there is a time when Ephraim isn’t in some sort of trouble, but otherwise he wouldn’t be Ephraim.</p><p> </p><p>“Everyone is looking for you, brother.” Eirika breaks the silence, and while they are technically in a hurry, she sits at Ephraim’s side on the shore. The moonlight greets her and lights up both their features as they mirror each other into the lake’s surface. <em> Two peas in a pond </em>. </p><p> </p><p>“They’re welcome to keep looking.”</p><p> </p><p>“Ephraim.” </p><p> </p><p>“I said what I said. I want to stay here longer,” he doesn’t look at her, not even once, though his gaze is fixed on her reflection. Eirika tries to put a hand on his back that he dodges by leaning to the side; if he has decided to be difficult, she can match her brother in stubbornness, if not everything else. </p><p> </p><p>“You will have all night to be here after the coronation. You know how Seth is, and if <em> he </em> is visibly losing his patience, brother, neither of us will hear the end of it. If it is nervousness that keeps you hiding here, that is understandable, but it will be easier to get over it if you come with me and ease into it rather than —”</p><p> </p><p>“Heavens Eirika, shut up. What part of ‘I want to stay here’ didn’t you understand? You of all people! Let me be! There’s time, they don’t need me to be there until that crown goes on my head, so what does it matter if I arrive now or later?” Ephraim’s voice sounds strained, but it’s not anger that he’s holding back. Eirika knows that tone, the same one he used when they lost mother, when their father eventually died as well. When Lyon breathed his last. </p><p> </p><p>Ephraim is holding back tears, but that does not make his harshness towards her any less painful. <em> Shut up </em>. Shutting up is all that Eirika has ever done. She has always remained silent in these matters like is expected of her as a young woman. There was never any room to bring concerns to her father, and now Ephraim is making it clear she is not ever welcome to bring them up to him. In the end, it all spirals back to the same place, and it swirls up in Eirika’s chest like a wildfire, burning up her patience. Burning up her silence. </p><p> </p><p>“No, I will keep talking! You are selfish, insufferable, you never think twice before you speak to anyone, let alone me!” Eirika grabs her brother’s shoulders, forcing him to turn around and look at <em> her </em>, at the situation he’s created. “You will be king in two hours, so now you think you can take this even further without consequences, do you not? I never ask anything of you because I know you will brush me off. And now...and now you finally have an excuse to do so. King Ephraim, who will listen to no one but himself.”</p><p>They look at each other, and while Ephraim doesn’t cry — a foolish thing of Eirika to expect, he never cries — his lower lip is quivering, and his shoulders in Eirika’s grip are so tense she fears bruising him. Even so, she refuses to let go. Ephraim has avoided her for long enough, they have been strangers for long enough. For a split second, Ephraim gives the impression that his reply will be meek, however his expression twists into one of anger.</p><p> </p><p>“Is that really what you think of me?” He grabs her wrists and forces her to let go. “I’m not unaware. I’m not stupid. You think I don’t know, that I was never fit to be king? I’m not steadfast like father, or kind hearted and patient like you. No matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise, the thought of the crown on my head terrifies me. When I told father all those years back that you should inherit the crown he got angry!”</p><p> </p><p>“Wait,” Eirika slides her hands out of Ephraim’s grip. He had avoided squeezing her; it was very much like him, to avoid hurting his sister no matter what, even if he still hurt her heart many times. “You...you said what to father?”</p><p> </p><p>Maybe she misheard, or Ephraim misspoke. Neither would be unexpected.</p><p> </p><p>“I never wanted to be king. I thought father would understand.” Ephraim smiles, though it carries a lot of pain. Eirika does not stop him when he faces the lake again; instead, she inches closer to do the same, the two of them shoulder to shoulder, looking at each other’s reflection. The mirror of their souls, easier to talk to than the shells they have built along the years. “Ever since we were small, I admired you, Eirika. You were serious in your studies, unlike me, even knowing the throne could never be yours. At times it made me jealous. No one batted an eyelash at your choices, meanwhile father’s eyes were always on me.”</p><p> </p><p>“I was jealous of you, too,” Eirika admits. “It upset me that you seemed so uncaring about our kingdom, about the consequences of your actions, and yet you were still the one allowed to look after Renais one day. Many times I have wished...our places were swapped. I’m sorry, brother.”</p><p> </p><p>“Sorry for what? You had every right for it. I love Renais, it’s not that I don’t...but I learned some honesty with myself years back. My heart yearns for the great outdoors — I want to travel, to help people in the ways that <em> I </em>know how to. Running away from studies, not taking being the crown prince seriously, it was all in hopes someone would notice and listen to me. One evening...father had enough of my attitude, and brought me over to talk. I ended up telling him how I felt. That you deserved the crown of Renais more than I did.”</p><p> </p><p>A slight breeze picks up from the horizon, and the lake’s waves ripple close to their feet. A few drops of water splash Eirika’s face, as if trying to wake her up. This entire time, the two of them have wished they could be more like the other, or simply to swap places. In her own selfishness, Eirika has never stopped to think that Ephraim could ever be unhappy with his responsibilities, with something she has uselessly yearned for for years. It is guilt that rears its ugly head. Ephraim never listened to anyone, because no one ever listened to him. Is it too late to have that change? For both their sakes, she hopes not. </p><p> </p><p>“As you can imagine, he didn’t take it well. He said it was my birth right, and that your place was only to support me. That I should think of you, too, and how cruel it would be to ask of you to hold any responsibilities. I tried not to let it get to me. After all, father was still young, it would be at least a decade until he died and I were to become king. Perhaps, by then...by then he would change his mind. That’s what I told myself.”</p><p> </p><p>And then Fado died, and the two of them, still young and not ready, were thrown into the turmoil of war, both knowing very well that their fate written by others would be shoved upon them sooner than it had any right to be. This time, Ephraim allows his sister to touch his back in a comforting gesture.</p><p> </p><p>“I think I understand,” she says, leaning her head onto Ephraim’s shoulder. “Many times have I dreamed of telling father that I wished to become Renais’ queen. Being married to someone in a different kingdom, ripped away from my homeland just because of who I am...it scared me. It still does. I know Renais, I know its people; I doubt anyone is ever ready to wear a crown, but I at least was willing.” </p><p> </p><p>“You don’t hate me, then?”</p><p> </p><p>“Why would I?”</p><p> </p><p>“For being like this. I become king tonight, and yet here I am, hoping I can still run away. For wanting to throw the life that you covet away like it’s nothing.”</p><p> </p><p>“I could never hate you, brother.” Eirika smiles at the lake, and to her relief Ephraim smiles back, though she finally notices something amiss in the reflection. Ephraim’s eyes, to the brim with tears he has never allowed himself to cry, only for his sister to see and know of. She keeps silent about it, as she knows Ephraim would hate for someone to point out that he is crying, perhaps for the first time since their mother passed away.</p><p> </p><p>There is no shame in crying. Eirika ends up doing the same, and the moon’s light veils them both as the pent up feelings of years of silence on both their parts finally come to the surface in the form of droplets. With each tear that hits the ground, another one of their worries gets wordlessly spoken, until they’ve bared their hearts to each other in the dead of the night.  </p><p> </p><p>Usually, it is Ephraim’s part to come up with the questionable plans. Usually, Eirika would scold herself for the thought that has crossed her mind; however, the lake’s reflection doesn’t lie. They look the same, and oh, they have been carrying the same weight, and now they hold the other’s secrets within. If so...are they not, fundamentally, the same person now? Eirika wipes the remaining tears with her sleeve, and decides to speak without thinking things through this time around.</p><p> </p><p>“Ephraim, if I were to cut my hair, and wear heavy robes like yours, do you think anyone could tell us apart?”</p><p> </p><p>“Other than Lyon? No, I doubt. Eirika, why are you — that’s ridiculous.”</p><p> </p><p>“But you just acknowledged yourself that it can work.” Eirika takes a deep breath and stands up, and offers Ephraim her hand to help him up as well. “And what will they do, if they find us out eventually? You will be long gone from here, and by then I can prove myself to be a good ruler of Renais.”</p><p> </p><p>Ephraim takes it, and does not let go even after he is already up. “But you don’t want to be king Ephraim. You want to be queen Eirika.”</p><p> </p><p>Eirika laughs it off. “That is true, but I can put up with being a stubborn, silly brother for a couple years, until Renais has changed to accept it. And so, what will young princess Eirika do, now that she has permission to make whatever she will of her life?”</p><p> </p><p>“Depends. How does a mercenary princess sound to you?”</p><p> </p><p>“Splendid.” </p><p> </p><p>Hand in hand, they head back towards the castle in the guise of the dark. There is not much time left, but if someone can be coaxed into making this little lie work out for them, it is Seth. The crown will be heavy, no matter who wears it, but their mutual happiness would more than make up for the weight and the hardships ahead. </p><p> </p><p>Goodbyes are only temporary.</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>“Eirika, love, there’s a letter for you.” </p><p> </p><p>L’Arachel is waving a sealed wax letter at her from the garden’s archway. Eirika has spent most of her morning here, busy with teaching her daughter a few things about flowers and the natural flora of Renais. The young Ephie has long fallen asleep in her mother’s lap, however, and Eirika has been stuck there for a good hour now; better that, than waking her precious princess up.</p><p> </p><p>“A letter? Where from?” </p><p> </p><p>“Frelia,” L’Arachel replies as she takes a seat by Eirika’s side on the swing and hands her the letter. “Royal seal, too! Must be from Innes.”</p><p> </p><p>“My, he does not write often.” Eirika breaks the seal with care to take the piece of paper from inside. It is perfumed, which means Tana is the one who actually wrote it, and judging by the messy lettering she must have been quite excited while doing so. </p><p> </p><p>Gerik and his mercenaries visiting the castle to help the Frelian royal family with some internal affairs regarding bandits. A certain mercenary deciding to stay for a while. Innes, <em> an idiot brother </em> in Tana’s words, convincing said mercenary to remain as a knight at the Frelian court. How many years has it been? Perhaps seven, or eight, since Eirika last heard news of her brother that are more than mere rumors of his whereabouts or his heroic deeds. After all these years, it makes sense that even he would settle.</p><p> </p><p>The last line is an invitation. Eirika smiles at the letter and puts it back inside the envelope with care. “How would you feel about a small trip to Frelia?”</p><p> </p><p>“Oh dear me, I adore vacations! So, what’s the occasion?”</p><p> </p><p>“A family reunion,” Eirika says, her mind already filled with all the stories she has to tell Ephraim, all the stories they have to tell each other. She knows, with absolute certainty, that she will be able to look him in the eye and say that she has indeed found happiness; something tells her that her brother will do the same, and their separation all those years back holds no regrets.</p><p> </p><p>A fate for them, written by them only.</p>
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